Will Castrol Syntec SAE 75w-90 gear oil work for the gear casings on my ATV? The book calls for Honda SAE 80 hypoid gear oil but that stuff costs 4x what the Castrol does.

I run Valvoline 80W90 Semi-Blend gear oil in my Quad and the chain drive for my Sled. The stuff works perfectly! I change the oil every 500 miles on the quad and once a season on the sled.

On the quad - I do it that often due to that fact that the diffs get in the water etc. When I change it in the sled, the oil almost doesn't need to be changed... even after 1500-1800 miles of ripping along it is in good shape! But that sucker only takes 8 ounces.. so 1 quart last me 4 YEARS! haha..

Once I run out of the semi-blend stuff I have, I am going to switch to full sythetic.

Will Castrol Syntec SAE 75w-90 gear oil work for the gear casings on my ATV? The book calls for Honda SAE 80 hypoid gear oil but that stuff costs 4x what the Castrol does.

You need to post in the Honda forum. A non-Honda owner might stear you wrong!

First and foremost, the oil must be HYPOID specific. Hypoid gears are very hard on oil, so it needs a very robust anti-wear additive package. As I recall, either GL4 or GL5 is ok. Honda's own oil is called Shaft Drive Oil and is 80W85. The diff and final drive only take a scant few ounces and don't need to (usually) be changed very often, so I can't see why price would ever be an issue for anybody who can already afford the purchase price of even a used quad.

Personally, I run Maxima ester based 100% Syntlhetic Gear Oil, 75W90. In my Ranchers I change it about twice a year, and once a year in the 250's.

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